It’s rare that someone falls into the student transportation industry. It’s even rarer when it happens unbeknownst to them. We can all thank one nonprofit counselor for Michael Brown finding his way to the yellow bus.

In his “before” life, Brown was an insurance man. A dream to open a workshop for the developmentally disabled brought him to the North Bay Regional Center in the ‘80s. While waiting to talk to someone, he heard a woman in an office nearby hit her desk and exclaim “shoot,” drawing his attention.

Poking his head in the stranger’s door to ask if she was OK led her to ask Brown if he knew anything about transportation. He answered no, but that he is a quick learner. After a brief pause, there was a form in front of him that she asked him to fill out. It was a simple form, he recalled, one sheet, basic contact information, and the name of his company. 

“I said, ‘I don't have a company, so what should I put down there?’” he said. “The counselor says, ‘Michael's Transportation.’ And so that’s what I did. She said she didn’t think anything would come of it, but thank you anyway. And so I gave her the application and I left.”

A few months later, he got a call that he had received the contract. “‘What contract?’” he asked. “Transporting the developmentally disabled for North Bay Regional Center. Oh my God, what? I knew nothing about transportation. I'm in the insurance business! They gave me about 90 days to get up to speed. And now the rest is history.”

Brown took his surprise new venture seriously. He secured one bus, took a course, and learned the school bus business. His bus salesman said Vallejo Unified needed some help, so he stepped up for them, too. Word got out, and suddenly multiple schools were inquiring. 

Niche, found.

Behind Brown’s Business

A Vallejo, California, native, Brown attended Sonoma State College and graduated with a psychology degree before returning home. He then worked for American National and Allstate selling auto and life insurance. We know what happened after that.

Now, Michael's Transportation Service (MTS) is a family business founded by Brown and his wife, Paulette, with “one bus, a hope and a promise.”

Their daughter April, who nominated her father for this award, is COO and planned successor as the baton is passed before Brown retires. April launched a career in radio broadcast marketing, spending 17 years in Virginia, before returning home to fulfil a long-held calling to contribute to the family business. “I had always known I would return, but I also recognized the importance of growing and maturing professionally outside the comfort of familiar surroundings,” she said. “My time away provided the experience and perspective needed to step into leadership with purpose and clarity.”

MTS is headquartered in Vallejo, with three other locations in Sacramento, Stockton, and Watsonville. Its fleet includes 150 buses, including diesels, gasolines, and electrics, from Thomas, IC Bus, Blue Bird, and Collins, plus three Prevost coaches. 

They buy from Peterson CAT, Cummins West, and Sacramento Truck Center, and work with Motive, TransAct, Driveware, Call Multiplier, Team on the run, and REI for software and hardware solutions.

The company has 130 employees, 95 of whom are drivers. MTS serves over 100 districts and transports 1,600 students from Oakland Unified, Sacramento City, San Jose, Stockton, and more. 

Training Drivers

In 1996, Michael’s Transportation expanded its impact by founding MTS Training Academy, a dedicated division established to develop and certify professional school bus drivers. As the official training arm of Michael’s Transportation, the academy has become a cornerstone in preparing people for careers in commercial driving, with a strong emphasis on safety, excellence, and industry compliance.

Today, the academy employs a team of 35 staff members, including two state-certified instructors, three behind-the-wheel trainers, eight Class A instructors, and four dedicated recruiters. This robust instructional and recruitment force ensures that students receive high-quality, hands-on training and support throughout their journey toward licensure and employment.

At the helm of MTS Training Academy’s strategic growth is Dr. Alana J. Shackelford, chief partnerships & community engagement officer. In this senior leadership role, she oversees the academy’s operations, guiding the director, recruiters, and instructors to ensure a unified and effective training ecosystem. With a doctorate in educational administration, she is the architect of the academy’s innovative training curriculum, and is instrumental in designing, updating, and aligning programs with industry standards. Beyond training drivers, Dr. Shackelford empowers instructors with the tools and knowledge to teach others, creating a sustainable cycle of excellence that continuously builds the next generation of transportation professionals. Her leadership also extends to forging key partnerships and strengthening community relationships that advance the mission and broaden the reach of MTS Training Academy.

During the pandemic, the training academy expanded beyond school bus drivers to also train commercial Class A and B truck drivers and municipal heavy-duty equipment drivers, a move that Brown says saved them during those trying times. April formed an emergency response team to keep the doors open and the business running.

Pre-pandemic, MTS had about 300 drivers. Since California has always had a driver shortage, they started a driver staffing program around 2015, placing graduates in a contract with a short-staffed district.

“We not only provide drivers for Michael's Transportation, but we also provide drivers to other school districts throughout the greater Bay Area here in California,” Brown said. “The school bus industry has been good to me, and it's just a way of us giving back.”

Michael’s also works with California’s AB 109 probation office, allowing non-violent, non-sex offenders to find work after prison. “It was a decision that we had to make, not based upon the bottom line, but based upon the fact that we are good corporate citizens,” Brown said. “We realize we're changing people's lives, and we celebrate that.”

“It's funny, we're known more for that than we are for school bus,” he added, “because it offers such a needed tool for the recently released incarcerated through the process of being trained, being placed, getting an employable skill, raising a family and having opportunity for career advancement.”

Transition to ESOP

While MTS started as a family-owned business, in 2009, it became employee-owned. Brown calls it the most important decision he’s made since being in business.

What prompted the change? A Biblical story about the disciples inspired Brown to do something to restore economic justice and empower his team members, giving them an edge in society that they may not have had otherwise. 

“In our economy, we have what you call the haves and the have-nots, and that gap is getting wider and wider,” Brown said. “And there's a reason for it. I believe it's because of the business structure of exclusion as far as ownership is concerned. So instead of you serving me as an employer, I'm here to serve my employees. It's a win-win situation.”

The other advantage an ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) has is that it won’t die with its owner, Brown said, citing that 40% do. It provides a natural succession plan.

“By giving your employees the opportunity to participate in the future growth of the company makes for a very healthy situation,” he added. “And you get a greater commitment from the people working around you because they have a personal interest in the success of the company.”

One more plus? The federal tax rate for ESOPs is zero.

Just over 15 years into being an ESOP, about 85% of the company belongs to the staff.

“There's some equity there, there's some justice there, and there's just a better way, I believe, of doing business here in America,” he said. “Employee ownership is the way to go.”

Community Support

MTS is highly involved in its community for the reasons mentioned earlier about being a good corporate citizen and helping California’s re-entry population. 

Its buses often provide shuttle service for about 15-20 marathons, festivals, and other local events each year. They also sponsor local sporting events and employee little league teams.

“If there's something that needs to be done, and you're here as a servant leader, then you just do it,” he said.

Industry EV-olution

When he started in the business, Brown remembers that drivers were mostly women who worked part-time (he now has contracts for eight-hour days to keep drivers on staff). 

And, Type Cs once dominated the landscape. Manual five-speeds at that. “There are very few conventionals out there now, but my whole fleet was conventional when I first got started,” he said. “Now they're all transit and electric buses.”

Brown also shares that MTS was the first private company to receive five electric Blue Bird buses from the state. He’s mostly happy with them, but mentions range is a concern on longer field trips. However, the buses can complete 80% of routes within city limits.

Brown’s wish, or request, is for charging stations for buses and heavy-duty vehicles to be more readily available like they are for cars. He even says MTS is willing to partner on this: “We have our own charging stations, so we know a little bit about how they work. We just don't know enough to build out the infrastructure here in California.”

Another change: Thanks to COVID, the state’s Department of Education also moved to allow virtual school bus instruction. “That had never been the case until the pandemic,” Brown said. “And that is very helpful to us because now all of our classroom training is online.”

Even as technology and AI continues to catch on in every facet of life, Brown doesn’t believe the contracting industry will see too much drastic change. “Serving school districts, I think they will always be in a place where they will have more activity than they have drivers and buses to cover all of the transportation needs,” he said. “I've been doing this for 40 years, so some things are never going to change. I think that will always be a model here in California.”

Aside from more EV chargers, Brown’s other request to the industry is to make school bus driving a more attractive profession. “There's very few young people that you see driving school buses. And that's something that we need to address as an industry, is why is that the case and what can we do to change that trend? This is a career path.”

His advice for the next generation? “Don't take no for an answer.” And while it’s good practice to be cautious about filling out mysterious forms, sometimes, saying yes after an unexpected encounter can lead to something really special.